The present invention relates to patient vital signs monitoring systems and pertains particularly to an improved multi-mode system with a freely portable monitoring unit.
In the aforementioned application of which I am co-inventor, a vital signs monitoring system is disclosed which includes an esophageal stethoscope catheter incorporating a miniature microphone for electrical pick up and transmission of signals representative of the sounds generated within the chest of a patient. These sounds of particular interest include the breathing sounds and the heart sounds. Processing circuits enable separation of the breath and heart sounds as desired by the operator and enable measurement of heart or pulse and breath or respiration rates and comparison of these measured rates with preset reference rates with means for initiating a visual or audible alarm in response to critical variations from the norm. The system includes temperature sensing means in the esophageal catheter and a processing system for processing the various signals with an IR transmitter and receiver combination with the transmitter transmitting the vital signs sounds by way of IR waves to a miniature portable receiver, including an earphone carried by a monitoring physician or anesthesiologist. This permits maximum mobility of the anesthesiologist with full monitoring capability during medical procedures while the esophageal stethoscope is in position.
During the critical times prior to and subsequent to insertion of the esophageal stethoscope into the patient, vital signs are normally monitored by an air tube stethoscope which monitors the heart and breath sounds or the blood flow sounds during measurement of blood pressure. This procedure however unduly ties the anesthesiologist to the patient during this critical monitoring period or in the alternative leaves the patient unmonitored during brief moments when the anesthesiologist must attend to other matters within an operating room.
It is therefore desirable that a vital signs monitoring system be available which permits a monitoring physician to constantly monitor the vital signs of a patient with full freedom to move about an operating room.